


Love you, Sunshine

by earthquakemind



Category: Larry Stylinson - Fandom, One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M, queer as folk!AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-11-12
Updated: 2014-03-31
Packaged: 2018-01-01 07:15:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1041935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earthquakemind/pseuds/earthquakemind
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"So, what was your name again?" Louis says, absently as he taps his fingers on the wheel, drumming at a song that isn't really playing.</p><p>"I haven't told you" the kid states as a matter of fact. And he's right. </p><p>"You can tell me now" he snaps back, the tone of his voice changing putting emphasis on the last word.</p><p>"No" the stranger cuts off.</p><p>"Why?" </p><p>"When I leave this car, you won't need to remember my name cause we will never see each other again"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, I had been thinking about writing this for a long time and now I decided to actually post it. It's based on Queer As Folk (USA) and... I hope you like it! :)
> 
> PS: I'm Spanish so... Sorry about grammar mistakes or poor vocabulary. I'm trying my best, promise.

Louis is pissed. His reasons? 1. It’s raining 2. It’s late 3. He hadn’t fucked today. And all because he had been working extra hours to be able to keep the loft he had grown attached to. But, hell, giving up a fuck for some work? That’s a whole new level of sacrifice Louis had never encountered –nor he ever wanted to. He’s driving under the dense curtain of waterdrops Pittsburgh had turned into when he looks at the car’s clock –two in the morning, damn- and Babylon crosses his mind immediately. He could do it. Go there, dance for a while and catch a fit man to satisfy his sex thirst. Yeah, it would be perfect if it wasn’t for the attention call his body is making on him to get some rest. Hard week, hard day, hard him.  
He reconsiders the idea. It’s Wednesday and 1. During the week the club is full of 50 year olds trying to relive their youth 2. He had already fucked the acceptable ones.

No Babylon, then.

Fantastic.

A handjob will do for today. Louis looks at the clock again and just ten minutes had passed since the last time he checked it. Ten minutes more to get home. And he’s in a need for that handjob already and why is his life so hard? And why his dick is hard as well and no one’s there to suck it? Oh, yeah. Because he had been responsible enough to think about his bills instead of his physical needs.

From now on, fuck responsibility. And some butts along the way, too.

While he's deep in his thoughts, Louis has to squeeze his eyes when the shining of a lightning blinds him and he hardens the grip on the wheel. Holy shit. He really needs to get home.

Once Louis takes a breath and relaxes a bit after the incident, he sees something moving in front of him. The car approaches it faster and faster and when he gets close enough, he notices it's not "it" but a person. He stops the car right in that moment. If he keeps like this he will suffer a stroke. Anger forming in his stomach and reaching his cheeks, reddening them, Louis unfastens the security belt and gets off the car feeling his heart pounding loudly on his chest, threatening to abandon it.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? Do you want to get killed or what? Jesus, I almost had your body under my car!" Louis screams at the top of his lungs, in part because he's angry and in part because the rain falling heavily between them wouldn't let the stranger listen to his words if they weren't being yelled.

The black silhouette that is the stranger doesn't make a move or speak or breathe. Louis feels like he's talking to a wall so he approaches him and shakes his shoulder.

"Hey, I'm talking to you" Louis says this time less harsh, he had already spilled part of his rage and -he has to admit to himself- it's not that much of a deal. He would have reacted differently if he wasn't so stressed by work and of course he would be less irritated if he had put his penis on good use. But he hasn't so here he is.

He's about to start screaming right in the Stranger's ear when he looks up and lets Louis see his face -with the hoodie he had over his head it was impossible to decipher if it was a man or a woman, a girl or a boy. Now he knows it.

The Stranger is a boy with messy curls framing his face -too defined to be considered as a kid's one but not enough to be considered as a man's. Louis starts to analyze his features. He's definitely beautiful. Pretty, even. God, Louis, you must be double his age, he tells himself to stop the thoughts of the boy that were already forming in his head. He might be known by his heartlessness when it comes to fuck -and even when the boy in front of him would definitely fit his 'boys to fuck senseless' list, his boundaries stay there. He never shagged a minor -he doesn't need to ask the Stranger, he knows he can't be older than 17- and he won't start now. No. His dick contradicts him when it twitches in his pants at the sight of the kid's plump pink lips. And then, his gaze goes back to his eyes and he finds something he wasn't expecting to.

The raindrops can't hide it. The boy is crying, his chest accompanying his heavy breaths. So, summing up. There's Louis, 29 year old. Business man -a pretty important one, if you ask- and sex God -he didn't give himself that name, that was other's task but yeah, wouldn't be lying if you said he spends more time naked than with clothes on. It's a Wednesday rainy night and he's standing in the middle of a road, cold leaking through his coat and leaving him trembling, watching how a Stranger -who he was about to hit- is worrying his lower lip to stop the tears from keep falling. 

He has his eyes on the unnamed young boy and out of instinct his feet walked him until they were face to face. 

"Are you alright, kid?" it was the right thing to say and the right thing to do. He had not much time for conversation cause the rain was making his head ache already and there was still some road to drive through to get home. He wanted to end it right there and right now. See what's wrong with the kid, act polite and then leave making sure he's fine at the end and can get home by himself. 

At his words, the kid stops biting his lip and it starts trembling instead. It's coming. The tears, they are coming again. Louis knows it, just like when you anticipate a baby's about to cry when they display the same gesture the Stranger is doing right now. Louis' mind is still crowded with 'and what do I do now?' questions when suddenly, the kid decides himself.

One moment he's standing from a safe distance from him and suddenly there are tiny arms surrounding his waist and holding him close while some curls tickle his neck and tears get confused with rain drops on his clothes.

The stranger is sobbing harder than before and Louis could do nothing more than pat his back and sush him to calm him. At this point it didn't matter that Louis had no idea who this kid was or why was he crying like that. Louis knew in that moment he wouldn't be able to leave him there, defeated. So he did the only thing he could do.

"Hey, kid" the Stranger's head was still resting on his chest so he lifted his chin until their faces where mere inches apart. Louis swallowed thickly. He was really beautiful. "I'm gonna take you home" he said simply. The boy's eyes widened immediately and he shook his head frantically, mouthing 'no, no, no', hand gripping his shirt tight and desperate. 

"Get in the car and we'll talk about it, okay?" it was the only thing that Louis thought of. Shelter from the storm in the safety of his car. What would happen next was secondary. They both needed to stop shaking under the rain. 

The kid finally nodded and walked by his side before entering Louis' car.

Louis sat on the driver's seat and he immediately felt the kid's eyes on him, scrutinizing. The chills up his spine were due to the cold. Yeah, absolutely. It's not that he found extremely sexy the boy next to him and the fact that he had cocked his head to take a better look of Louis' futures wasn't helping much. No. The cold must be.

"Thank you" the boy said, not whispering as it would be usual. He said it out loud for Louis to hear it.

"For what exactly?" Louis took the hands out of the wheel and started mimicking. "Almost killing you back there? Me getting off the car to take it on you? Or you mean that moment when I shook you cause I thought you weren't paying attention to me? Doesn't seem like anything anyone should thank me for" the rant was over and Louis found himself wondering why in hell he was explaining himself to the kid. 

It is simple. 

Take him home. Wave goodbye. Forget about it. 

Simple.

Don't start a conversation with him, idiot. His parents are gonna cut your balls off if you bring him much later than this. Louis mentally slaps himself. What the fuck? Since when does he have any responsibility over him? 

Since you decided to help him instead of turning your back on him, Louis inner self contemplates.

"For not leaving" Curly said -since he still had no name in Louis' eyes, he got on with calling him Curly internally, it was a cute pet name if he was being honest to himself, he even wondered if the boy would get mad if he ever got to call him that.

"Everybody would have done the same thing"

"No, they wouldn't" the kid argued back.

"Whatever" Louis said, ending what the conversation was leading to. The kid just shrugged and let it go.

"So, as I was saying, I'm taking you home" this time, Louis' voice was firm.

"Funny, cause I have no home to go to" did Louis hear that well? No home? That young boy next to him has nowhere to go to? It can't be.

"You must be kidding me. How old are you? 15?"

"Oi!" he says, offended, followed by an "I'm 17". As if that made so much difference.

"Still young" the older man says, more to himself than anything. "You must have parents".

"I do have parents" he nods accompanying the parroted words with the gesture.

"So you must have a home" Louis tries to find the logic in all of this but he can feel he's about to fail.

"No, I don't" aaaaand there it is. Failure.

"But-"

"They kicked me out this morning" he breathes out, hardly.

Louis knows he shouldn't be pushing the kid that far but he just can't understand what's happening. It's so surreal. The whole situation. He needs to put his ideas back in order and most of all find out why he's even bothering with a complete stranger. It makes no sense to him but he's moving on with it anyways. "What the fuck? You can't be serious! What have you done? Killed someone?"

"Not someone but something. I killed their expectations on me"

"Oh"

"Yeah" the kid worries his bottom lip as if trying to find out what the right thing to say is in situations like that. "Look. I'm really grateful and all but you owe me nothing. So let's see if the storm passes in a few minutes so I can get somewhere safely without causing you anymore trouble and you can get back to wherever you were going to, yeah?" Louis, taken aback at how assured and firm the kid sounds, nods. He looks through the car's window and the rain doesn't look like stopping anytime soon. Anyways, the Stranger suggested to wait so, why not? There's not much more they can do. 

Finally, Louis decides to park. There's not a single car in there but it's still safer that way. Once Louis turns off the motor and the car is correctly placed, silence falls between them like a heavier curtain than the rain itself. It's suffocating in some way. And Louis is shit at functioning under pressure.

"So, what was your name again?" Louis says, absently as he taps his fingers on the wheel, drumming at a song that isn't really playing.

"I haven't told you my name" the kid states as a matter of fact. And he's right. But Louis never thought he would take his words literally. It's an expression, just that. I could have asked for his name directly, Louis shrugs to himself. But whatever.

"You can tell me now" he snaps back, the tone of his voice changing putting emphasis on the last word.

"No" he cuts off.

"Why?" 

"When I leave this car, you won't need to remember my name cause we will never see each other again"

"How do you know?" 

"I don't. But the possibility of that is 1 in a million"

"And what is the possibility of two people meeting like we did? Hum?" Louis contemplates, reasonably. "I tell you. None. But here we are, anyways. And I'm trying to be kind but it's getting really hard when you don't even answer a simple question"

"I didn't ask you to help me"

"Oh, really? Think about it. You were crying in the middle of nowhere at one in the fucking morning. Looks like a desperate call of attention to me"

"It wasn't. That wasn't meant to be seen. I was just confused. I'm okay now. And if you let me, I'll get off this damn car and get back to my fucked up life and you won't have to see this wrecked kid's face again" he stops ranting because he already had his hand on the knock, about to let the rain fall on him again. Louis acts quick and stops him in his tracks, fingers engulfing the boy's arm tight enough for him to notice and turn to him.

"What?"

"You can't go" 

"And that's because..." the boy starts saying for Louis to continue.

"Because I'm responsible of you now"

"No, you're not. Already told you, you owe me nothing. In fact, it's me in charge. Now please, let me leave. It's been a long day and I really need to sleep this out" his eyes are almost pleading. Please, please. Let me go. But Louis won't listen. He never does. Maybe that's his first one rule. Never care about anyone but you. If you stop and think about it, that would save trouble to a bunch lot of people. But empathy and all that shit ruins everything.

"And where exactly would you sleep?" at that the boy next to him stays silent. "I guessed that much"

"I will find a hotel or something"

“And you’ll pay it with which money? Cause you aren’t even carrying any luggage”

“Why do you even care, anyways?” he says as if trying to avoid the question. Louis’ not buying it but it’s late and he wants to go home and take a shower and sleep and forget about all this and please, stop with this already.

"Cause you're a minor and since the moment you entered this car you started being my responsability. I want no trouble" Louis follows the conversation because it would be of no use to push the kid to talk about something he’s not comfortable with. Besides, he has no time for arguments.

"Then why the fuck didn't you leave me in the road when you could?" he asks, harshly. Insistent kid, he is. If Louis wasn’t that irritated right now, he would probably applaud the boy’s attitude. If.

"Because you fucking clung to me, remember?" Not in his 29 years of life he had to deal with something like that. Ever. But, in the end, he did this to himself. The kid is right. He could have just go, keep driving home and forget the incident -maybe even have wank before going to sleep to release the day's tension, or just for fun since Louis never needs a reason to do so. But he knows what would have happened next. After his high, his hand still on his softened dick, his mind would have gone straight to the Stranger. What if something happened to him?, he would wonder in a quest for answers he would never get. On the contrary of everyone's belief, Louis has a sensitive part. It's small, almost imperceptible. But it's there. And yeah, one part of him offered him shelter out of obligation, but the other, the other just couldn’t leave him like that, all the rain falling on him like it was the end of the world. That last part was even stronger than the other but shush, no one needs to know that.

"You were there, wrong time, wrong place"

“Well, now we’re both fucked up”

“Yup” the kid nodded. So they both agree for the first time in all night. Hip hooray. And now what?

Silence took over them again, the only sound between them being the raindrops falling incessantly on the roof and falling down the glass clouding the road’s view. To say it was awkward was an understatement, you could actually cut the tension and the ticking noise of the kid’s watch –one, how the fuck was still running when there was a 100% chance water spoiled it and two, imagine how silent it was considering a sound like that is usually imperceptible- wasn’t helping that much either. Time continued passing –the irritating noise kept reminding Louis- and they had not move along that much since their first encounter. Louis bit his lip, exasperated and out of the blue, another sound took him out of his reverie. It was no thunder –it felt like it, though- but the kid’s laugh. It was endearing, really. The way he burst in laughter suddenly and how his body started contorting, arms tightly shrouded around his waist in a pointless attempt to stop. There were already tears running through his cheeks and Louis stood there, mesmerized by the sweet sound and the youth emanating from him. God, he was beautiful.

No, Louis. Stop.

Minor alert, minor alert, Louis kept in mind.

There was no way he could stop his lips from twitching at the kid gasping for air as another explosion of laughter erupted from him, though. In a matter of seconds, Louis joined him and they were both silly laughing at nothing in particular –at least, not something that Louis knew- and it took them several minutes to recompose and bring to mind they needed to actually breathe.

“That was awesome” the boy said, a hint of laughter still on his voice.

“Yeah” Louis answered, smile not vanishing from his face yet. “Why were we laughing, again?”

“This” he opened his eyes and raised his eyebrows as if saying ‘isn’t it obvious?’.

“This, what?”  
Rolling his eyes and snorting a bit, the not-that-stranger-anymore kept speaking up. “The whole situation. It’s so stupid and silly I don’t know how we hold up the laughter for so long”

“We didn’t” Louis pointed out.

“Indeed”

Again, silence. This time didn’t feel like the first one. It was not awkward but almost comforting in some kind of way. And it should have freaked out Louis to feel comfortable like that around someone he just met –under surreal circumstances- but somehow, it didn’t.

“So what do we do now?” he asked. Now, the tension released and all, his mind was clearer and he could think straight.

“What about taking you home?”

“I told you already, I have no place to go to. You want me to spell it to you? Cause I can do that, actually. In fact, I was a finalist in a spelling contest when I was a kid and it was kind of-“

“Hey, slow down. I didn’t mean that. I said, what about taking you home?” Louis said raising his hand to stop the kid’s rant.

“And I said that-” he stopped on his tracks when the words sank in. “Oh” he finally muttered, comprehending what Louis was coming to.

“Yeah. What about that?”

“But-”

“I know we just met and blah blah blah but look what time it is –we’ve been procrastinating for an hour or so, really?- and it seems like we won’t come to terms with this anytime soon in this car. You want to sleep and so do I, you want to leave and so do I. Come home with me. We sleep this madness off and tomorrow morning we go straight to your house and speak to your parents so we can disappear from each other’s sights forever. How about that?” at the mention of his parents, the boy pulled a face but along with all the speech he was nodding and agreeing lowly, so Louis got that as a yes.

“Okay” he finally said.

Louis threw his arms in the air, close to singing “hallelujah” but stopping at the last moment. Enough dumbness for today, thank you very much. After that, he turned on the ignition and the car roared loudly–it seemed like it was waiting for this to happen as much as both of its occupants were- and he took a long mouth of air to let it out suddenly. He smiled.  
“So, spelling contests, huh?” Louis started driving while his eyes sat for a moment on the kid’s face just in time to see his cheeks red with flush from the remark. Their trip to Louis’ house took less than it usually did –or maybe that was just Louis’ impression considering he always drove alone and this time he had company to keep a conversation with. It went with little chatter and the is-he-actually-gonna-tell-me-his-name-or-I-still-have-to-address-him-as-kid told him how when he was a kid, his mother used to take him to spelling contests and even though he actually hated them, he was good. Wow, it’s such a privilege to stand next to such a high-up, Louis commented, mocking him. That earned him a punch on his arm but he didn’t mind it. Cause in the end, he was having fun and by the way the kid –really?- kept smiling –was that a dimple? Louis reminded himself to look into it later, maybe under the dim light that his loft could offer- he was enjoying himself as well. Unexpected turn of events, some might say. Unexpected but nice nonetheless.

Once they arrive at Louis' loft, the kid stares it with wonder.

"Wow" he comments. " it's really nice" he adds, jaw still on the floor.

Louis shrugs. "I guess" he likes his place, of course he does but somehow it never seems good enough. He always want more. More and more expensive furniture. More space. More, more, more. 

"You must be kidding me" the curly-haired boy roams around it, turning on his heels to add "this must have cost you a fortune". He's right, it did.

"Nothing I can't pay" he admits, nonchalantly. He sometimes forget not everyone has as much money as him.

"Who are you, Bill Gates?"

"Oh, babe, he learned it all from me" Louis teases causing the guy to roll his eyes. 

"You're sleeping on the sofa, by the way" Louis added once the boy had stopped on his tracks. 

"Is that how you treat your guests?" he said with a hint of a pout glowing in his lips.

"Actually, it's not. No one lasts that long to call them guests. We fuck, they leave. Easy" Louis commented absently as if that was something everyone was used to.

"Oh" the boy added when the information sank in. "I'm the exception then"

"You totally are" Louis points at the sofa and the curly kid shrugged as if saying 'well, it could have been worse' and sat on it. 

"Is it sad that this is more comfortable than my actual bed?" He said when the weight of his body started feeling like floating on the expensive sofa surface.  
"Pretty sad, yeah"

"Ha ha. Very funny"

"You started"

"Fair point" the boy said as he lied down completely on the sofa and resting his head on the soft cushions. By the time he was closing his eyes and Louis was heading to his own room, the kid spoke.

"My name's Harry, by the way".


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Save the last dance for me. I love this song” Harry pointed out dreamily as he put his seatbelt on and started humming the lyrics. Louis groaned in disbelief.
> 
> “I should have guessed” Louis said with his eyes still fixed on the road in front of him.
> 
> “Have guessed what?”
> 
> “That you’re the romantic type” Louis stated as a matter of fact. Now that he thinks about it he realizes it was pretty obvious Harry would be like that. Young and with innocence still glowing in his eyes, waiting for the love of his life to knock at his door. Louis wishes he hadn’t lost that innocence, well, he wishes he had it in the first place. He wasn’t that lucky.
> 
> “Everyone is” Harry mutters as if he was revealing a universal truth. Louis laughs but his smile doesn’t reach his eyes.
> 
> “Not me” he says, firmly. Louis turns around and there’s Harry, cocking his head like a confused puppy. If Louis felt like melting, well, no one needed to know. “Sex is much better” he spits out, biting his lip and raising his eyebrows slightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My plan is to update every week -hope I can keep at that rythme! So here's the second chapter. Hope you like it! :) xx

Louis woke up with the sun rays filtering through the poor-closed curtains. He swore under his breath and turned on his side in order to check the clock. 6:55 am. Are you fucking serious? That's just five minutes before the alarm goes off. Louis growls throwing his hands in the air. He wishes he could just go back to sleep but he's fully awake now and that seems kinda impossible. Hip hip hooray. Hint: no.

He's coming to terms with the fact he actually needs to get up to get to work on time and he groans again in defeat. He passes both his hands down his face after switching off the clock alarm and sighs, lifting his body from the mattress and hanging his feet off the edge. The day hasn’t started yet and he feels like it's gonna be a hell. Fun-fucking-tastic.

But first things first. Louis smiles to himself. At least he has time for a morning wank. Oh, God. Yes. Perks of waking up earlier -he would have jerked off anyways but knowing he actually has time feels a lot better. He slips his hand under his briefs. He's not the only one fully awake now. Like that, hand in crotch but barely touching his dick yet, he stands up and leads his way to the bathroom. His hand’s on the knock when he hears something. More like someone actually. Someone's singing.

Louis stays mesmerized for a few minutes by the huskiness of the voice. It's beautiful, Louis recognizes. The kind of voice he could pay money to listen to. Raspy but sweet nonetheless. Hypnotizing, even magical. He zooms out -even gets to close his eyes- and comes back down to Earth seconds after. And that's when he gets alarmed. Cause there's someone in his house. In his shower. Singing. What the fuck.

Louis pinches the bridge of his nose, trying to recall what happened the day before. It can't be someone he fucked cause he never, ever, lets anyone stay the night. It's rule #2 in his book, after 'never care for anyone but yourself'. And Louis always sticks up to his rules. So no, it can't be a one-night stand. Which leaves him with the possibility of that man being a thief who didn't bring himself to get out of the house without checking how good the hydro massage was. If that was the case only one word crosses Louis' mind for him. Idiot.

He has no time to keep wondering about the mysterious case of the singing man in his shower because suddenly he's faced by a naked surprised boy.

Holy shit. He remembers. Harry.

"Oops" Harry mutters, bringing his hands to his crotch and trying to hide what had already been exposed to Louis' eyes. He can do nothing but smirk as his eyes lie on the boy’s failed attempt to cover his dick.

"Hi" Louis bites his lip and tries not to laugh at the situation. It's so damn hard so laughter finally erupts from his throat with the force of one thousand suns. His eyes are unashamedly fixed on the kid’s hands and he tries to ignore the fact that he’s not really in a good position to make fun of anyone considering he’s also standing there, hand on his dick. Different purposes, it’s all. Taking advantage of Harry’s distraction, he takes his hand off his pants and tries to play it cool. It works, seems like Harry didn’t notice. Perfect.

"Don't bother" he comments, pointing in Harry's cock direction "I've seen more of those than you'll ever see in your life" Louis keeps laughing when he turns a rage shade of red.

"You're a doctor?" Louis burst into laughter again. This kid.

"Innocent one, aren't you? I don't inspect them, dicks I mean. I lick, wrap my lips around them and then I let them fuck my mouth and other things your baby ears aren't ready to hear"

“I’m not a baby!”

“But you’re close enough” Louis chuckles, playfully. “So I just told you I like cock and you focused on the baby part?” he points out, slightly frowning. He’s not used to people dismissing the fact that he’s gay. Either he receives a good reaction like “cool, bro” or he gets called “faggot” straight away. There’s no in between.

“Yeah?” the boy says, shrugging “so what?”

“It’s just…” said Louis, finger on his chin, thoughtful “people usually react differently when I bring my sexuality into conversation”

“Well, that would be ironic” Harry answers cryptically.

“And why’s that?”

“Because that’s exactly the reason my parents kicked me out” Harry answers as if it wasn’t a deal at all to confess his sexuality to a stranger. But well, he slept in said stranger house and heard by the stranger himself that he’s gay. So maybe they are not that strangers anymore, maybe they stopped being when Louis offered him shelter and Harry accepted it.

“Oh” Louis says in realization. Suddenly the idea of going to Harry's house and talk to his parents wasn't that brilliant. Louis had gone through that as well and it was hard but if he could go back in time, he wouldn't change a thing. Lucky him he had Liam to help him out. But Harry... Who would be Harry's support? After all, he found the kid under the rain, crying. Didn't look like he had someone caring about him. Louis shrugs the thought off. It's not his life and Harry's not his problem. His only responsibility with him is to bring him home safe. That's it.

"That's all you have to say?" Harry breaks Louis' train of thought.

"Yeah? What do you want me to tell you?"

"I don't know, you could give me some advice on how to deal with this and-"

"Listen here, kid" Louis started, hand on his hip and finger accusingly pointing at Harry’s face.

"It's Harry" he says, offended, interrupting the speech Louis had in mind.

"Whatever" Louis rolls his eyes, exasperated "look, Harry" he puts intensity on the last word gaining an approving nod from Harry. "I'm not your psychologist, I'm not your friend, I'm just the man that was casually crossing the wrong road at the wrong time" he stops to take a breath and look at Harry's disappointed face "who casually is gay as well. But you're still nothing to me, you're just the kid who got in the way and didn't let me have my goddamn night wank and not even the morning one. So no, I won't give you advice because as soon as I leave you in your house, I'm disappearing of your life. And that's it. Nightmare's over" Louis knew he was being an ass, he knew it. That didn't change the fact that if Harry needed someone to be by his side and stick with him through blood and name, Louis wasn't gonna be that person. First of all because come on, Louis' life was perfect. Sex, money and people around him to share it with. Second, Louis could barely take care of himself, how was he supposed to be a role model for a guy who just came out of the closet? No, Louis was not what Harry was looking for, not what he needed.

"Take me home, then" Harry stated, coldly while Louis nodded and walked to his closet and chose his clothes. As Harry changed into the same hoodie and same jeans he was wearing last night -thank God Louis had put them to dry the night before as Harry fell into a deep sleep- Louis put his jacket on and took his car keys from the pocket.

“Hurry up, kid. I’ll wait downstairs” he said, closing the door behind him and walking down the stairs taking two in every step. Louis was anxious and wanted this to end as soon as possible. He wanted to lose sight of Harry. There was something about him that Louis couldn’t put a finger on. Louis was the kind of people who had no problem in reading everyone’s minds –he’s a publicist, after all, it’s his work to do so- but with Harry it was… Different. Louis was confused by him and the twinkle in his eyes and, most of all, those goddamn dimples that appeared at each side of his mouth whenever he smiled –yeah, Louis checked if that hint of a dimple he saw the night before was an actual dimple and he was right. Louis loved enigmas but Harry seemed like one of the biggest ones he had ever encountered.

He walked to the car and opened the door, waiting for Harry to arrive. Suddenly, he remembered. Work. He took the phone off his pocket and called sick, he even coughed a few times to sound more convincing to his boss. After that, he got bored. Thad kid was such a girl, how much time did he need to get in his clothes and leave the apartment? Half an hour? Louis was impatient so he turned up the radio to lighten the mood. Save the last dance for me started playing and Louis rolled his eyes in disgust, ridiculously romantic songs got on his nerves. Love is for fools. Sex is what matters. No commitment or attachment of any kind. Just a night of adrenaline mixed with sweat and moans. That’s all Louis needed to have a perfect day. The guy in the song saying he doesn’t care who dances with his girl as long as he’s the one to take her home? That’s bullshit. Oh, I love you so I will wait until you’re done with every single guy in the room. Bullshit squared. If the girl you want to fuck is dancing with everyone but you in the club you don’t stay and watch her, you go and find another one to fuck. Easy as that. That’s what happens with love, it wastes your time and at the end, you’re left with a broken heart and an empty bed. What’s the use in that? No, Louis doesn’t believe in love. He believes in fucking.

Suddenly, the building door opened and Louis turned his face to look at it. It was Harry. Louis noticed he was not wearing any jacket so the cold hit him and it was making him shake. Harry put his hands in the jeans’ pockets and looked to the right and to the left in order to find Louis’ car. It was kind of cute, actually. He looked like a lost puppy. Louis sighed. “I’m in front of you, idiot” he said to himself, endearingly. Wait, what was that?

Lost in his thoughts he didn’t notice Harry had already approached the car, opened the door and was sitting beside him now.

“Ready?” he asked.

“Sure” Louis answered, out of his reverie. Then, he asked for Harry’s address. Once Harry answered, after a long pause because he seemed to have forgotten where he lived –really, this boy needs one of those necklaces kids wear with their address written on it so someone can get him home if he gets lost, what was his age again?- Louis nodded. It was not too far away from there.

A few minutes after, they were on the road and the damn song was still playing on the radio. God, when would it end? Louis thought bitterly.

“Save the last dance for me. I love this song” Harry pointed out dreamily as he put his seatbelt on and started humming the lyrics. Louis groaned in disbelief.

“I should have guessed” Louis said with his eyes still fixed on the road in front of him.

“Have guessed what?”

“That you’re the romantic type” Louis stated as a matter of fact. Now that he thinks about it he realizes it was pretty obvious Harry would be like that. Young and with innocence still glowing in his eyes, waiting for the love of his life to knock at his door. Louis wishes he hadn’t lost that innocence, well, he wishes he had it in the first place. He wasn’t that lucky.

“Everyone is” Harry mutters as if he was revealing a universal truth. Louis laughs but his smile doesn’t reach his eyes.

“Not me” he says, firmly. Louis turns around and there’s Harry, cocking his head like a confused puppy. If Louis felt like melting, well, no one needed to know. “Sex is much better” he spits out, biting his lip and raising his eyebrows slightly.

Louis expected Harry to answer back or just use some silly romantic comedy quote to prove him wrong and go with some “love is all you need” kind of talk. But he got nothing in return. He frowned and Harry lowed down his head and focused on his lap, eyes fidgeting with the cloth of his jeans.

Oh. Damn.

Louis hadn’t thought about the fact that he could be still a virgin. He was still young, after all.

“Are you-“

“Yeah. I’m a virgin. Go ahead, make fun of me”

"I- I didn't mean -"

"It's here" Harry stops Louis' speech coldly. Louis parks the car in front of Harry's house and watches him get off the car in a hurry, not even saying goodbye or taking a look back. Fortunately, Louis' reflexes act for himself and in no time, he's running after him and closing his hand around Harry's arm to turn him around.

"Hey" he whispers, softly. Sweetly, even.

"What do you want? You're done here, aren't you? It's over. You took this pathetic kid home and now he's gonna go back to his empty life and apologize to his parents to be who he is. It's over, okay? You're no longer needed, Louis. Thank you for the ride, by the way" Harry pulls away from Louis' touch and heads back home but he's stopped by Louis hand again, this time surrounding his waist.

"It's not over" Louis' is so close to his ear now, breath caressing his neck as his chin rests in Harry's shoulder. The younger kid takes a deep mouthful of air and tries to recompose.

"It is".

"It's not until I see your parents apologizing to you and receiving you with their arms wide open". Harry snorts out a bitter laugh.

"You're done, then. You're never getting that. And, as much as I wish I was, neither am I".

"They are just confused. They must be surprised about you being gay and all, give them a break" Louis bites down his bottom lip. Who is he trying to fool? Why is he trying to bring Harry's hope back? His own parents never got over the fact their kid was a fag, why would Harry's? Because not everyone are like them, Louis thinks as his mind goes straight to that moment his parents told him their son was dead to them. Louis really hopes Harry's parents are not like his, he doesn't want anyone to go through that Hell he was lucky to go back from. Not even his worst enemy. And most of all, he doesn't want Harry to live that way. He looks so in love with life and so full of hope. It's too soon for reality to crash him like that. Too soon to get broken. Too soon to be left alone in a world so cruel.

"You don't know them, Louis" 

"They are your parents. Harry. They will accept you sooner or later" He tightened his grip around Harry's waist comfortingly, lips dangerously close to his earlobe.

"Do you really believe that?" Harry asked as he turned a bit so he could stare directly at Louis' eyes.

"Yeah" Louis wished his voice was firm enough to sound convinced. Liar, he thought to himself. Liar. He stopped blinking as Harry's greens tried to scrutinize him deciphering if he was telling the truth or not. Seemed like he found what he was looking for because suddenly a shy grin was showing and there was a silent 'thank you' at the tip of his tongue. Louis eyes couldn’t help but rest on Harry’s plump lips and all of a sudden, he had the urge to kiss them. He bit down the inside of his cheek. In normal circumstances he would have done it out of instinct but now and considering Harry was a minor and all… You’re not seeing him again, idiot. Do it. It doesn’t mean anything and he needs a little push. Maybe if you kiss him… Louis thought to himself. So he let himself go and closed the gap between them. It happened all so fast. One second Louis just wanted to peck him and the second after, he found himself unable to let it at that. Harry’s lips were burning him down and Louis was on fire. He wanted more, more, more. He wanted to bite his mouth and fuck it with his tongue. He wanted to taste him and find out why he was driving Louis so mad. But he didn’t. He pulled away as soon as he realized what he was doing, before he could turn this into more than it really was. This was not Louis’ modus operandi, though. It never was. He barely kissed anyone, not even during sex. Sex was just that. Sex. To kiss someone meant involvement and an intimacy Louis was always avoiding. So why the hell was he kissing this kid he just met the night before? His lips were too inviting, too pink… Louis just couldn’t help it. 

As for Harry, he jumped at first, startled by Louis’ kiss but in no time, his hands were around Louis’ holding them tighter around his own waist. The older boy arms made him feel so safe and his kiss filled him with warmth and security. It didn’t last long, though. It was ephemeral, a brief touch that let Harry wanting more. He tried to deepen it but Louis had already pulled away and his arms weren’t surrounding him anymore. Harry was left there, pouting helplessly. Louis tried to not smile in endearment but it was kind of impossible because he looked so cute, cheeks still red and mouth ajar. Asking for another kiss. A kiss that never came. Instead, Louis lifted his hand and caressed Harry’s slightly swollen bottom lip. The boy closed his eyes and gave up to the touch. Louis fully smiled this time, out of Harry’s sight. 

“Come on, boy. Someone’s waiting for you” he said, breaking the magic between them in a second. Harry felt like someone just threw a bucket of cold water at him and opened his eyes slowly as if he was waking up from a pleasant and long dream. And even if there was a glow in his eyes that wasn’t there before, Louis’ words brought him back to Earth and he nodded realizing he needed to do it sooner or later. Face his parents. 

“It’s been nice meeting you, Louis” he said and Louis’ smile reached his eyes this time. It felt like a goodbye. It was obvious this moment will come. After all, they were just passersby in each other’s lives. To say goodbye was just a matter of time. And that time was now.

“Good luck, Harry” were the only words that came to Louis’ mind. Suddenly, the thought of the boy disappearing entirely from his life made him weak at his knees. Why did he care, anyways? This was just another anecdote to tell the boys in Liberty Diner while having some pints and they would love it like crazy because, really, how the hell did Louis ended up with some kid spending the night on his apartment. And most important, how the hell he did it without getting under Louis’ sheets. Yeah, just another story to tell. About Harry the rain kid and Louis, the 29 year old who kissed him in front of his parents’ house. Unforgettable.

So that was it. Harry started walking away. Louis should leave now. However, he didn’t. He just leaned against his car’s door and waited for Harry to enter the house. Yeah, he was acting a bit protective but what else could he do? He saw himself in the boy, after all. As Harry was knocking at the door, he remembered when he was young and was in the same situation. Desperately trying to make his parents understand, knocking at their door night and day until they opened and broke his heart. The day his father denied him as a son was the day they officially died for him. If that was about to happen to Harry… Well, Louis crossed his fingers that wouldn’t be the case because he didn’t want to think about what would happen if that was the case. 

So he waited until the door was open and Harry was standing there, all awkward and his eyes on the floor not daring to look his father in the eye. The man was in a suit and it looked like he was about to leave to go to work. How can he keep on with his life when he knows his son is out there, who knows where, without protection? What kind of father gets so disappointed in their son they decide to erase them from their life like that? As if liking boys instead of girls made Harry any different. He was still the kid they raised, for God’s sake. He was still their son. Louis’ blood was boiling in his veins and he could feel his frustration rise. Besides, from that distance, Louis couldn’t hear what they were talking about. Harry kept staring at the ground and his father was red from shouting. Still, Louis didn’t reach to hear anything. Or maybe he didn’t want to. He felt like going back in time and seeing his father open the door in front of him to just tell him to leave again and never come back. He had the urge to run next to Harry and hold him tight, tell him everything would work out at the end. Tell his father he didn’t deserve a son like Harry, that he would regret doing this. You’re gonna lose him. Please, take a step back and realize this is not really what you want. Please. Please. Louis almost felt the tears in his cheeks. It didn’t matter how much time passed since his parents were erased from his life but it still hurt. He wore the thickest of the masks but anyone near him knew how he felt about it. 

Harry’s back was facing him and he couldn’t see his face but he didn’t need to. He knew he was crying by the way his feet tapped the ground and how he held his hands behind his back, tightly tangled. He saw Harry break in front of him. And he wanted to tell him, hey, get angry. Scream back. Don’t stay silent. Harry, react. Please, react. That’s what he did. He screamed back and the whole neighborhood woke up, curious faces in the windows to see what was happening. It didn’t matter how loud his father screamed, he always screamed louder. And then, all of a sudden, there was just silence. And it was broken. Their bond, their family. Everything. 

But Harry… Harry was doing nothing and Louis wanted to stop it all. To shut his father, to push him till he bleed. And he would have done that but he knew Harry would never let that happen. Even when his father was treating him like shit –there was no need to actually hear his words, even from a distance Louis could feel the anger in his face and the way his neck vein was showing- Harry would never want to see his father hurt. 

And then it happened. He hit him. Harry’s father slapped him and Louis saw how the hope he had Harry’s parents weren’t like his faded away and all that was left was Harry, hand on his swollen cheek watching how his own father closed the door in front of him to never let come in again. Louis had no time to react because Harry had already turned around and he was looking at him, tears flooding his eyes and feet stuck in the spot. He didn’t know Louis stayed. And they both stood there, looking at each other from afar, not knowing what to do or say. It felt like they were meeting each other for the first time. Because again, Harry was crying and broken and Louis was just... There. Watching the boy’s life fall to pieces in front of his eyes. 

So Louis opened his arms. Again. This time, he opened his arms for Harry, he let him in. For a second, he could see a bit of hope in the kid’s eyes and for that second, it was worth it. So Harry run to him and let him embrace him. Chest against chest, arms tightly holding each other, Louis let him cry, tears staining his shirt. This time, there was no rain to hide them. Louis could imagine how Harry felt because he went through that as well. And he knew, as well that he could say nothing to make it better. Because it took time. And friends. By the way Harry was shaking and the sobs kept getting stuck in his throats, Louis guessed Harry had no one. No one at his side. No one but him.

Maybe it was not a coincidence after all. To find him under the rain like he did the night before. 

“Let’s go home” Louis said, fingers tangled in Harry’s locks as he tried to soothe him. There was silence. And Harry’s arms hugged him tighter. He knew right then that Harry had lost his home but maybe Louis would be able to build a new one for him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't bullshit me" Harry said exasperated now.
> 
> "I'm not" 
> 
> "I can see it" 
> 
> "See what?" Louis' exasperation made it through his voice. He really had no clue what Harry was trying to achieve with all of that.
> 
> "The hurt in your eyes" Harry regretted saying it the second it left his throat. He was pushing too far and he totally knew it. After all, he had no right to talk to Louis like that. He met him a few hours ago, for crying out loud. He couldn't talk like he knew everything that was crossing Louis' mind because he didn't. But one thing was for sure. Louis' pain was real.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I know, I'm sorry it took me so long to update! There were some things I needed to take care of and well I couldn't write. I'm back, though! And I'm so happy to be writing again. So, here I go. Hope you like it (feedback is appreciated)!!
> 
> Yolanda  
> xx

Please, say something. Please.

Harry had been quiet from the moment he entered the car. The tears had already dried up on his cheeks but he kept sobbing silently. By the way his shoulders were shaking Louis could tell how hard it was for him to not break down. Louis wanted to say something meaningful, something that could save him some pain. But he was not good at this. Comforting people was not his strong point. Human interaction, in general, wasn’t his strong point. For once in his life, he wished he could do something. Anything. To calm Harry down, to make it better. So he did what his heart –oh, God, was he turning into a sap now?- told him to. He drove to the only place he never got tired of.

Harry stayed with his eyes focused on the road in front of him but when the car stopped, he couldn’t help but turn around to see where they were.

“I’m not a kid” Harry pointed out, voice still a bit shaky, as he crossed his arms in front of his chest, annoyed. How many times were necessary for Louis to understand that yeah, he was a teen but that didn’t turn him into a kid right away? Harry was sick of everything. His parents, his circumstances. Harry was sick of everything, he just wanted to get off the car and run until his legs gave out his weight. He wanted to escape and never come back. To start all over again in some place where no one knew about him. New school, new friends –or better said, friends period- new… New life. And by bringing him to a park Louis was not helping with that feeling. It reminded Harry of his childhood and all those memories he should learn to erase from his mind if he wanted to move on and get over the fact that his parents turned their back on him. The knot in his stomach returned by the mere thought of it, hand in front of his mouth to stop himself from throwing up. He felt sick and he wished he could go home. If he had one, that’s it.  
“I know you’re not” Louis broke the silence and Harry’s train of thought.

“You do?” Harry raised his eyebrow, daring to look at the boy next to him to see if he was being serious or not.

“Yeah”

“So what’s this?” he brought his eyes to the window to look at the empty park in front of them. Harry really couldn’t believe what made Louis think that would be a great idea. Louis took off his seatbelt and got off the car. In no time, he was standing next to the copilot’s door and opening it for Harry.

"I want you to feel better" Louis took Harry by the hand and pushed him out of the car. Once out, he made no move so they stayed still, Harry’s back against the car and Louis oh so close to the younger boy’s body. Louis realized then that his hand was still holding Harry’s. None of them let go.

"So you bring me to a park and make me feel like a kid" Harry replied, but his grip on Louis' hand went nothing but tighter. Louis took that as a good sign. He noticed then how unbelievable it was how their hands fitted perfectly. How Harry’s, even being the ones of a teenager, doubled Louis’ in size. So when they got them tangled, Harry’s hand covered Louis’ almost completely and it made him all warm inside. Weird enough, Louis felt safe like that when it should be the other way round. He should be the one protecting Harry but instead he was the one who wasn’t letting go, the one who was bringing their bodies closer and holding their hands tighter.

"It's not like that" Louis assured him, running his thumb in circles over Harry's palm in a relaxing pace. It ended up in a brief caress and when he noticed, he stopped the motion. He really had no idea what had gotten into him and why he was behaving like that. But he wanted to stop, he wanted to stop thinking about Harry and, most of all, he wanted to stop thinking about him like that. 

"Right" Harry said, incredulously.

"I mean it" Louis took a deep breath and tried not to look straight at Harry’s eyes. He knew how green they were and how absorbing and he wanted to stay firm and unaltered. He didn’t want to get involved with Harry. Or worse… Attached. Then, why the fuck you let him into your house? Louis thought, bitterly. Because he had nowhere to go and most important, no one. And you were lucky enough to get through the same circumstances with the support of your best friend. Louis’ mouth went dry all of a sudden. He got into this by himself. Now he had to move along with that first decision of letting a stranger come in his car. Now, their lives were entangled and there was nothing Louis could do. At least, it’s not a forever thing. Just until Harry finds a place to stay in, just until he finds someone to replace you. Louis nodded internally. Yeah. Until then.

"This is the place where I used to come when I felt lost. I thought..." his words were full of emotion cause as he spit them the memories came back to him. It hurt. It would always hurt. Louis, innocent enough, thought the scar had healed, that he was okay now. But the pain... He never forgot about it. It was there, under his skin.

"Oh" Harry sighed, his lips twitching in a shy smile. Suddenly, his free hand was on Louis' chest and Harry could feel the beating of his heart through the clothes. He wanted to come closer, to rest his head in Louis' chest. Louis, the stranger that gave him shelter, the one that didn't push him away when he hugged him under the rain. Louis. The one who kissed him. Harry could still recall the sweet touch of lips against lips, he could still recall the tenderness that Louis showed in that simple gesture. Because Harry was aware it was nothing but a kind gesture. It meant nothing, right? It couldn’t be.

“So are you coming or-“ before he was able to finish talking, Harry was already walking towards the park leaving a taken-aback Louis behind. In mere seconds, he was following the boy’s steps and joining him on the swings. It’s been so long since he last went to the park. Now he was just too busy with work, Babylon and fucking. That was pretty much his life. He had no time for swings and memories. He sent a silent “thanks” to Harry for making him remember there was still a place for him in the middle of all the chaos that was his day-to-day.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Louis had to ask while he took his seat next to the boy who was already slightly swinging. He felt like avoiding the subject would be worse at the end so making Harry face the truth seemed like the better option. By the way Harry’s eyes closed for longer than they should during a blink, Louis understood he didn’t share his opinion. You can’t run away from it. Not forever. And Louis knew. He knew it from experience. He was just trying to make it better for the boy. Just that. He wished Harry could appreciate it instead of sending him that death glare that was now burning holes on his cheek. There was no need to make eye-contact with Harry to know that was exactly what was happening. So he kept looking forward and not focusing on anything at all while his feet pushed the ground underneath him and his swing started finally moving.

“Not really” there was honesty in Harry’s voice. And most of all, Louis could feel the hurt and the uncertainty. After all, he was just a kid who lost everything and everyone. In his seventeenths, he had to build up his life again as if nothing he had done before mattered at all. As if he was born again. Louis couldn’t bring himself to fully understand what would be crossing Harry’s mind at that moment. Pain, betrayal, loneliness. Loneliness.

“Harry-“ Louis whispered in hopes that Harry couldn’t catch the way his voice was almost a beg. A beg for Harry to listen, to let Louis carry with him the weight on his shoulders so he didn’t have to do it all by himself.

“Don’t. Don’t say my name like that” Harry murmured. They were both peacefully moving forward and backward, not completely raising their feet off the ground yet.

“Like what?”

“With pity. I don’t want anyone’s pity”

“I don’t pity you” and it was true. It was not pity what Louis was feeling over him. Not at all. It was… Empathy. Yeah, that was the word.

“Stop lying to me. It’s not funny” Harry was serious now. He stopped the swing from moving and put his face on his hands, elbows resting on his lap. Louis could feel how the situation was overwhelming the young boy and how his walls were starting to fall down right in front of his eyes.

“I’m not-” Louis mirrored Harry but instead of staying where he was, he walked towards the boy and kneeled in front of him. Harry didn’t make a move so Louis put his hands on the kid’s thighs and started rubbing them softly. No response. “I’m not lying to you” he lifted Harry’s chin and cupped his face, caressing his cheek with the thumb.

“Please, Louis. I really don’t need this right now” Louis closed his eyes in defeat. How could he make Harry understand he wasn’t doing this out of pity?

“Harry…” his voice was so low it could be confused with the sound of the wind hitting the branches around them. His fingers grazed Harry's collar and ended up in the back of his neck as his thumb drew circles on his skin. Harry closed his eyes, a sigh leaving his parted lips. Seconds later a single tear made its way down Harry's cheek. Louis didn't let it fall completely, he wiped it with his thumb. The tear burned his skin. It felt like fire. God, he could almost feel all the pain it contained. Right after that, another tear followed. And another. And another one. Louis saw Harry's world crashing right in front of him. He could do nothing but stare as the boy tried to pick up the pieces of his life, a life that had turned to ashes in a matter of days. Ashes that were helplessly slipping through his fingers. Harry could barely breathe anymore. Tears did nothing but increase his frustration. Suddenly, Louis pulled him closer and made their foreheads touch. They both breathed down loudly. 

"Harry" Louis' fingers were still trying to erase the tears' tracks on his cheeks. "Listen to me, Harry" he paused, trying to compose himself. This situation brought back memories he thought were long forgotten. It was triggering. If he closed his eyes tight enough, he could see himself in that swing. He could see himself as Harry. And that's why he knew what the boy needed the most right now. "It's gonna be okay" he muttered. Harry laughed, bitterly. 

"You don't know that, Louis" Harry was looking him right in the eyes now as some kind of dare. "Everyone says that and it's never true". Harry had a point, Louis thought to himself.

"But not everyone is a living proof everything turns alright at the end, you know?" Louis mentally patted his own back. That's something Harry can't fight with cause it's true. He's a living proof one can keep moving on without a supportive family.

"Don't bullshit me" Harry said exasperated now.

"I'm not" 

"I can see it" 

"See what?" Louis' exasperation made it through his voice. He really had no clue what Harry was trying to achieve with all of that.

"The hurt in your eyes" Harry regretted saying it the second it left his throat. He was pushing too far and he totally knew it. After all, he had no right to talk to Louis like that. He met him a few hours ago, for crying out loud. He couldn't talk like he knew everything that was crossing Louis' mind because he didn't. But one thing was for sure. Louis' pain was real. 

"I--" Louis' hands fell down on Harry's lap -their foreheads still touching, lips dangerously close- and his fingers gripped the fabric as if he was trying to stop himself from doing something stupid. "I said you can move on not that it stops hurting". Harry pulled away and they were left facing each other, distance almost inexistent between them.

"I'm sorry" and Harry meant it. "It's none of my business, I shouldn't have..." he was silenced by the sight of Louis getting closer and closer. Was he... Was he trying to kiss him again? Their lips were almost on each others' and Harry didn't understand what was happening but he wasn't gonna stop Louis either. The touch of his lips was still present in his memory. He closed his eyes and tried to recall the feeling. It felt like fire. But not like the one the tears were causing on his skin mere minutes away. No. This fire was different. The kind that starts in your toes and creeps up all your body till there's not a single fiber that hasn't been warmed up by it. It was comforting. And he was about to feel it all over again. And Harry was ready to embrace it.

"I want you to come with me" Harry opened his eyes immediately, light blinding him all of a sudden. He felt as if he had been woken up from a bad dream. Disoriented, he tried to caught up with the conversation.

"Another one of your great ideas?" Harry said nonchalantly, hiding the disappointment he was feeling. It wasn't a product of his mind. Louis almost kissed him. What was a mystery for him was why he didn't do it at the end. Emptiness was all he could feel now as if something really valuable had been taken from him.

"It won't make you cry this time. Promise" how could Louis act like nothing happened? It did. He got so close to Harry he even closed his eyes for the kiss. He wasn't imagining things, okay? He wasn't. 

"Okay then. Just take me out of here already" Louis smiled warmly as he got on his feet and offered his hand for Harry to take it and get up as well. Harry got off the swing by himself, not accepting Louis' help at all. The man in front of him looked fazed for a second but he shrugged it off immediately, replacing the disconcert with another encouraging smile. Harry grinned back but it didn't reach his eyes.

Harry started walking behind him, head down. He was trying so hard not to think about how hard he wished he had closed the distance between them and kissed him right there. Instead, Louis left him hanging, waiting for a fire that would never come.


End file.
